Available Generic Names for Trilobites
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AVAILABLE GENERIC NAMES FOR TRILOBITES P.A. JELL AND J.M. ADRAIN Jell, P.A. & Adrain, J.M. 30 8 2002: Available generic names for trilobites. Memoirs of the Queensland Museum 48(2): 331-553. Brisbane. ISSN0079-8835. Aconsolidated list of available generic names introduced since the beginning of the binomial nomenclature system for trilobites is presented for the first time. Each entry is accompanied by the author and date of availability, by the name of the type species, by a lithostratigraphic or biostratigraphic and geographic reference for the type species, by a family assignment and by an age indication of the type species at the Period level (e.g. MCAM, LDEV). A second listing of these names is taxonomically arranged in families with the families listed alphabetically, higher level classification being outside the scope of this work. We also provide a list of names that have apparently been applied to trilobites but which remain nomina nuda within the ICZN definition. Peter A. Jell, Queensland Museum, PO Box 3300, South Brisbane, Queensland 4101, Australia; Jonathan M. Adrain, Department of Geoscience, 121 Trowbridge Hall, Univ- ersity of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, USA; 1 August 2002. p Trilobites, generic names, checklist. Trilobite fossils attracted the attention of could find. This list was copied on an early spirit humans in different parts of the world from the stencil machine to some 20 or more trilobite very beginning, probably even prehistoric times. workers around the world, principally those who In the 1700s various European natural historians would author the 1959 Treatise edition. Weller began systematic study of living and fossil also drew on this compilation for his Presidential organisms including trilobites. The name address to the Paleontological Society in 1951 Trilobita was introduced by Walch in 1771, at (Weller, 1952). However, his list was never about the same time that Carl Linnaeus was dev- published and to our knowledge no accompany- eloping his system of binomial nomenclature. ing bibliography was ever compiled. In the 1959 The early 1800s witnessed a number of mono- Treatise the bibliography is very select and large graphic works on Palaeozoic fossils including numbers of the author citations of generic names numerous trilobites. Major works of Dalman are not included. (1827), Brongniart (1822), Wahlenberg (1821), By the 1980s, when early preparations were Hawle & Corda (1847), Angelin (1851, 1854) underway for a revision of the trilobite volume of and Barrande (1846-1872) accelerated the syst- the Treatise a large increase in the number of ematic study of trilobites so that by 1893 when generic names to be dealt with had occurred. To Vogdesproduced the first annotated bibliography assess the extent of the increase Harry Whit- it was printed on over 400 pages. With sub- tington and Simon Kelly compiled a list of genera sequent additions (Vogdes, 1917, 1925) his work erected after publication of the first Treatise provides the most comprehensive, if not always edition up to 1983. This list contained about 2500 the most accurate, reference work for entrance to names having been compiled from the Zoological trilobite studies of the 19th century. Record and from lists provided by various In the 20th century the volume of public- individuals. This list was distributed to prospect- ations was such that the only comprehensive ive authors of the revised trilobite volume of the survey of trilobites was at the generic level, in the Treatise but not otherwise published. Treatise on Invertebrate Paleontology (Moore, The 1959 Treatise dealt with approximately 1959; Kaesler, 1997). Early in the preparation of 1200 trilobite generic names and the first revised the first edition of the trilobite volume of the volume of the trilobite (Part O) Treatise (1997) Treatise J. Marvin Weller of the University of dealt with about 500 generic names although Chicago compiled a list of trilobite generic Weller (1952) had indicated 1436 were known in names that would need to be dealt with in the 1950. Thus the list presented below, with more Treatise. Weller’s checklist included all names than 5000 generic names, represents a 430% and variations including mispellings that he increase in available generic names in the last 50 332MEMOIRS OF THE QUEENSLAND MUSEUM years. Weller’s (1952, fig. 11) projection of the Most of these remain valid names for trilobite rate of trilobite generic increase has not been genera but many have become invalid as junior realised; he correctly foresaw that it would not be synonyms, junior homonyms, unjustified possible. However, the aggregate number of emendations, unnecessary substitute names or 5000+ far excedes his calculated maximum curve suppressed names but they all remain available which had a projection of fewer than 3000 in the irrespective of any such subsequent history. year 2000. Given Weller’s experience we are not so bold as to anticipate the future. However, the Alphabetical listing. 1990s saw a marked reduction in the number of Each available generic name is followed by new names introduced probably due to the the author (all upper case) and year of publ- diminishing number of active taxonomists in the ication. The type species (as originally cited) field and possibly due also to decreasing areas of follows in square brackets. Next are data on the Palaeozoic outcrop remaining to be investigated. type locality of the type species. Where possible The current paper arose from independent ef- the rock formation containing the type locality is forts by each of us. JMA had compiled Ord- quoted with the State or Province and/or country. ovician and Silurian genera in support of studies If the formation is not known we try to provide by Adrain et al. (1988) and Adrain & Westrop the biozone of the type horizon or failing that the (2000) and this list had been freely available best geographic data available. In dealing with since 1998. PAJ assembled Cambrian generic larger countries we quote the state or province but names to define the extent of the Ptychopar- in many cases only the country is quoted. This is ioidea and extended this to present a paper on the followed, after a semicolon, by the family rate of appearance of generic names. That paper assignment (all in upper case) which cross refers was delivered at the Third International Confer- to the later systematic listing. Following the last ence on trilobites and their relatives in Oxford, semicolon is an indication of the age of the type April, 2001,where we agreed to join forces to horizon of the type species. This is in the form of produce a comprehensive list. Broadly speaking abbreviations of the Palaeozoic periods namely PAJ is responsible for the Cambrian compilation, Cambrian (CAM), Ordovician (ORD), Silurian JMA for the Ordovician and Silurian and JMA (SIL), Devonian (DEV) and Permian (PERM) or and PAJ for the Devonian to Permian. subperiods of the Carboniferous i.e. the Mississ- ippian (MISS) or Pennsylvanian (PENN) We hope that our effort herein will be a prefixed by L(lower), M (middle) or U (upper) or significant aid to all students of trilobites in their combinations of these where appropriate. considerations of whether or not to erect new generic names. All too frequently we see names At the end of many entries is an anotation in passing to synonymy because the full literature square brackets indicating known synonymies. search had not been undertaken or because the The first three letters are an abbreviation of junior full extent of the family concerned had not been (j.) or senior (s.); objective (o.) or subjective (s.); scanned. We hope this publication will be an synonyms (s.) followed by the relative generic invitation to be more comprehensive in consider- name and then the authority we rely on for these ation of generic assignments and in discussions relationships. Although we have attempted to of affinities. Moreover, we anticipate its use in quote the earliest author to recognise synonymies other ways not the least of which may be it is possible that we may in some cases unknow- quantitative biodiversity studies. ingly be quoting a secondary source. Some synonymies proposed in the literature are not METHOD OF ASSEMBLY quoted herein because we do not accept them. In We present both objective and subjective data. other cases, where synonymies have been The bibliography is objective whereas the syst- proposed and subsequently denied or altered we ematic arrangement is almost entirely subjective. have attempted to present our view of the most In the alphabetical listing data are objective ex- probable current situation. cept for family assignment and age. We have In the case of names that are junior objective tried. as far as possible, to consult the original synonyms (j.o.s.) or were preoccupied and have literature when compiling objective data. We been replaced this is indicated in square brackets have listed available names associated with at that name with relevant data supplied at the trilobites, i.e. those names that entered the senior objective or replacement name. While literature meeting the necessary criteria of the there are very many examples of misspellings of International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. generic names throughout the history of trilobite AVAILABLE GENERIC NAMES FOR TRILOBITES 333 publications most of these are obvious typo- not have direct experience ourselves. We graphical errors and those variant spellings are acknowledge that disagreements remain among not included in our lists. However, in some cases trilobite workers in some groups and that our we have identified that these errors have caused arrangement may not be universally accepted. confusion or are simply not obvious in their However, by including all generic names we meaning so we have included these examples in hope that future classifications will seek to deal the list indicating the error in square brackets.